Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Social Media: Regulation

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to introduce new regulations requiring technology companies to ensure that social media platforms distribute trustworthy news content.

lord ashton of hyde: We are committed to maintaining a news environment, both online and offline, where accurate content can prevail. We note Dame Cairncross’ recommendation that regulatory oversight be introduced as part of a ‘news quality obligation’ upon social media platforms. We will consider how this proposal can inform our approach, including through our work on the upcoming Online Harms White Paper. The White Paper will contain legislative and non-legislative measures to tackle a wide range of online harms, including disinformation, and will set out clear responsibilities in these areas, how they should be met and what should happen if they are not.

Department for Education

Academies: Pay

lord ouseley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment, if any, they have made of the salaries paid to heads or chief executives of academy chains; and whether there is any correlation between the salary levels of such heads or executives and improvements in standards of education in those chains.

lord agnew of oulton: Our reforms over the last 8 years show that autonomy and freedom in the hands of excellent leaders and outstanding teachers can deliver a world-class education. Academy status leads to a more dynamic and responsive education system by allowing schools to make decisions based on local need and the interests of their pupils. It allows high performing schools to consolidate success and share their good practice across their local area. This includes over 550,000 children studying in sponsored primary and secondary academies that are now rated good or outstanding, which typically replaced underperforming schools and that is, in part, down to our reforms.There is no single performance measure that adequately captures the scale, breadth and challenge within the roles of academy chain heads. Many of the highest paid trust chief executives work in some of the most challenging areas of the country and cover a number of schools, and have been able to achieve significant improvements for the children in their trust.We are clear that high pay in academy trusts must be justified with evidence of robust processes for setting salaries and reductions where appropriate. That is why we have already challenged 213 trusts paying either one person more than £150,000 or 2 or more people more than £100,000. Since this work began, 45 trusts have reduced salaries in their latest accounts return and this month I have written to 28 of the 213 trusts challenged in the previous round of high pay activity to further challenge where salaries have not been reduced. We remain fully committed to continuing and developing this challenge process.

Pupil Exclusions

lord laming: To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they are taking to reduce the number of children being excluded from schools.

lord agnew of oulton: The department supports head teachers in using exclusion where it is warranted. In March 2018, the government launched an externally led review of exclusions practice, led by Edward Timpson CBE. The review is exploring how head teachers use exclusion, and why pupils with particular characteristics are more likely to be excluded from school. It is also considering the differences in exclusion rates across primary and secondary schools in England.The review will report in early 2019. The full terms of reference for the review can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-exclusions-review-terms-of-reference.

Pupil Exclusions

lord laming: To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they are taking to ensure that children who are excluded from schools continue to receive a focused and thorough education.

lord agnew of oulton: It is the duty of the schools to arrange for the provision of suitable full time education from the sixth day of a fixed period exclusion. Local authorities are responsible for arranging suitable full time education for permanently excluded pupils, which must begin no later than the sixth day of the exclusion. Alternative Provision (AP) is the system in place to educate pupils of compulsory school age who would not otherwise receive a suitable education. The government is taking forward a programme of reform to AP. This includes a £4 million Alternative Provision Innovation Fund with 9 projects underway to improve outcomes for children in AP. Edward Timpson CBE is leading a review of exclusions, which will consider how schools use exclusion and in particular why some groups of children are more likely to be excluded from school. The review will report in due course. The full terms of reference for the review can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-exclusions-review-terms-of-reference.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Ascension Island: Marine Protected Areas

baroness hooper: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the formal request from the Ascension Island Council for long-term financial support for its Marine Protected Area.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has not received a formal request from the Ascension Island Government for long-term financial support for its Marine Protected Area. The FCO continues to work closely with our delivery partners to prepare the case for ongoing long-term support to those Territories who have participated in the Blue Belt programme, including Ascension. The Government recognises that there is a need to ensure that designated Marine Protected Areas are monitored and managed to the appropriate international standard.

EU Countries: Travel

lord hunt of chesterton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what advice they are providing to (1) UK and (2) non-UK residents who are planning to travel between the UK and the EU after 29 March 2019; and what steps they are taking to publicise such advice.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: For UK citizens, we are providing information on travelling to the EU after exit. All information is available online on the Government's dedicated website: gov.uk/euexit.We keep our travel advice pages up-to-date with the latest information about individual countries. People can subscribe to these pages to be kept informed about any changes. We are also providing information to UK passport holders regarding the potential change in validity rules to the Schengen zone in a no deal scenario. People are encouraged to check their passport's validity using a free checker tool on the gov.uk website. Information for EU citizens in the UK is also available on gov.uk/euexit.A campaign and extensive engagement is underway to give people the information they need. We are engaging extensively with stakeholders to distribute travel advice through their customer communication channels.

China: Human Rights

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to make further representations to the government of China on granting the UN full access to re-education camps.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We have serious concerns about the human rights situation in Xinjiang and the Chinese Government's deepening crackdown; including credible reports that over one million Uyghur Muslims have been held in re-education camps, and reports of widespread surveillance and restrictions targeted at ethnic minorities.During China's Universal Periodic Review at the UN Human Rights Council on 6 November, the UK made a statement which described our concern about the treatment of ethnic minorities in China, including Uyghurs. We issued a specific recommendation, calling on China to not only implement the recommendations by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination on Xinjiang, but also to allow the UN to monitor the implementation.Ministers and senior officials have been raising our concerns directly with the Chinese authorities for some time, and will continue to do so. The Minister for Asia and the Pacific raised our concerns about Xinjiang with Vice Minister Guo Yezhou during his visit to China on 22 July 2018. The Foreign Secretary also raised our concerns about the region with Chinese State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his visit to China on 30 July 2018. We will also continue to discuss this issue with a range of countries.

China: Ethnic Groups

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations, if any, they have made to the government of China, following recent newspaper reports of deaths of Uighurs from malnourishment, electrocution and torture in camps in Western China.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We have serious concerns about the human rights situation in Xinjiang and the Chinese Government's deepening crackdown; including credible reports that over one million Uyghur Muslims have been held in re-education camps, and reports of widespread surveillance and restrictions targeted at ethnic minorities.We are continuing to monitor reports and gather information about the developing situation, including through conducting official visits to Xinjiang. Ministers and senior officials have been raising our concerns directly with the Chinese authorities for some time and will continue to do so.

Philippines: Politics and Government

lord hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions, if any, they have had with the government of the Philippines regarding the establishment of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The British Government warmly welcomes the result of the 21 January plebiscite in the Southern Philippines which paves the way for a new and genuinely autonomous Bangsamoro government, with significant devolved powers. The UK was a founding member of the International Contact Group involved in the peace process and hopes the results of the plebiscite secures lasting peace for the region. UK support over the years has included sharing knowledge and experience learnt through devolution processes in the UK.

El Salvador: Politics and Government

lord hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they are making to the government of El Salvador about the deaths as a result ofpolitical violence in the first two weeks of January.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We are aware of reports of armed attacks by MS13 leading to a number of deaths in El Salvador in January. We have not made any direct representations to the government of El Salvador on these specific reports. However, ahead of the elections in El Salvador on 3 February, the British Embassy in San Salvador spoke publicly and privately on our expectation of free and fair elections without violence or unrest. We are pleased the electoral observers reported that the elections passed peacefully, with a smooth process and decisive result. Nothing further has emerged on possible political motivations for the killings by MS13 in January.

Israeli Settlements

baroness tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 5 February (HL13041), what steps they intend to take to protect the rights of Palestinians from illegal settler expansion.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We consistently call for an immediate end to all actions that undermine the viability of the two-state solution, including settlement expansion and the announcement on 11 February that Israel intends to retroactively legalize structures built on private Palestinian land. We are encouraging both sides to avoid taking actions which make peace more difficult to achieve.

Israeli Settlements: Palestinians

baroness tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 5 February (HL 13137), what steps they intend to take to protect Palestinians from Israeli settler violence given Israel's obligation to protect Palestinians under international law.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We urge the Israeli authorities to thoroughly investigate every instance of settler violence and bring those responsible to justice. Most recently we raised our concerns about settler violence with the Israeli authorities on 5 February. We have also stressed the importance of the Israel security forces providing appropriate protection to the Palestinian civilian population. We repeatedly call on Israel to abide by its obligations under international law and have a regular dialogue with Israel on legal issues relating to the occupation.

Nicaragua: Sanctions

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessmentthey have made of the decision by the government of the United States to impose sanctions underthe Global Magnitsky Act against leading members of Nicaragua’s Ortega regime; whether they have considered emulating that decision; and when they last discussed a global approach to selective sanctions in Nicaragua with the government of the United States.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The US have imposed sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Act on several senior Nicaraguan officials for their alleged responsibility in committing human rights violations. We believe that all those responsible for the ongoing repression against the Nicaraguan people should be held to account. We continue to work closely with EU and other partners in pursuit of a peaceful end to the crisis. In this spirit, we also continue to support EU efforts to establish a human rights sanctions regime, which could address situations like that in Nicaragua and hold violators accountable.

Nicaragua: Politics and Government

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report by the Inter-American Commission for Human Rights Gross Human Rights Violations in the Context of Social Protests in Nicaragua, published on 21 June 2018; how many people they estimateto have been killed, wounded, or detained by the Nicaraguan authorities since the start of the Ortega regime; and whatassessment they have made of reports of (1)medical staff being removed from their posts for providing medical help to injured protestors, (2) disappeared journalists, and (3) disbanded non-governmental organisations in that country.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The UK remains deeply concerned about human rights protections in Nicaragua and continues to support the work of the UN and OAS; the latest IACHR report confirms 325 deaths to date, including 24 minors. The UK condemns the recent crackdown on civil society and human rights organisations, including the stripping of the legal standing of the latter organisations. We are deeply concerned by the repression of independent press, including the continued targeting of journalists and media outlets; the Foreign Secretary tweeted about press freedom in Nicaragua on 22 January. We welcome the MEPs visit to Nicaragua between 23-26 January and support their recommendations calling for the restoration of dialogue, release of political prisoners and need for electoral reforms. The EU condemned the Government's repression and expressed support for regional efforts to ensure accountability for human rights violations in a statement on 21 January.

Department for Exiting the European Union

Borders: Northern Ireland

lord bassam of brighton: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will publish details of any contracts they have signed relating to technological solutions to prevent a hard border on the island of Ireland; and whether any of those contracts include matters beyond proofs of concept.

lord callanan: The Government has been in discussions with technology companies for many months. While no contracts have yet been signed, in the event of doing so we will follow the usual process.Parliament has been clear in what is needed to unite behind a Withdrawal Agreement: namely, legally binding changes to the backstop. The Prime Minister has set out three ways in which legally binding changes to the backstop could be achieved. First, the backstop could be replaced with alternative arrangements to avoid a hard border between Northern Ireland and Ireland. Secondly, there could be a legally binding time limit to the existing backstop, or thirdly, there could be a legally binding unilateral exit clause to that backstop.The Prime Minister and President Juncker agreed that our teams should hold further talks to find a way forward, both will meet again before the end of February to take stock of those discussions.

Treasury

Small Businesses: Loans

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to work with banks to ensure that there is an emergency funding programme for small businesses in the event of a no-deal Brexit scenario.

lord bates: The Government has regular engagement with banks and other financial services providers, including on their plans to support business customers in the event of a no-deal Brexit. This includes a Government-Industry roundtable in January. As the independent Bank of England has set out in its Financial Stability Report and Annual Stress Tests, UK banks are prepared and strong enough to continue to serve UK households and businesses even through a disorderly Brexit. The Bank’s stress test shows that UK banks could continue to lend in a scenario more severe than the financial crisis. The Government is already providing financing support for smaller businesses, with British Business Bank programmes supporting £5.5bn finance to 78,000 smaller businesses.

Financial Services

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact that a disorderly Brexit could have on the UK financial services sector.

lord bates: Leaving the EU with a deal remains the Government’s top priority. An Implementation Period is the most effective approach to ensuring a smooth and orderly exit from the EU. That is why it is so important that we are redoubling our efforts to reach a negotiated deal that Parliament can support.The Bank of England’s Financial Policy Committee (FPC) has highlighted that if the UK leaves the EU without a negotiated agreement, there would be an increased risk of disruption to cross-border financial services between the UK and the EU.However, as the FPC set out in the Financial Stability Report, the UK’s banking system is strong enough to continue to serve UK households and business even through a disorderly Brexit, in which there is no deal and no transition period. The Government is also doing the necessary work to make sure that we continue to have a stable and functioning financial services regime at the point of leaving the EU in any scenario and to minimise disruption for UK households and businesses. This includes ensuring we have a workable regulatory regime for financial services by day one, and providing transitional regimes for firms to ensure that any no deal cliff edge is smoothed. However, for customers of UK firms currently passporting into the EEA, the Government is unable to mitigate all the impacts of a no deal scenario unilaterally. We welcome the announcements that the EU and some individual member states have made to date, which indicate they will take steps to mitigate some of the risks. We stand ready to intensify our engagement and co-operation with EU institutions on preparedness for all scenarios, because it is in our mutual interest to lessen the risk of disruption to households and businesses, in both the UK and EU.

Overseas Loans: Republic of Ireland

lord morris of aberavon: To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the cost to the UK of assisting Irish banks and financial institutions during the financial crisis; and whether the cost of such assistance and money provided has been repaid.

lord bates: HM Government did not provide any direct financial assistance to banks or financial institutions headquartered in Ireland during the financial crisis. Ulster Bank, which is headquartered in Dublin, is part of the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) Group and indirectly benefitted from the recapitalisation of its parent company in 2008-9. In 2010, Parliament authorised a bilateral loan of £3.2 billion to be lent to the Irish Government as part of a wider international assistance package. Disbursements were made in 8 tranches between 2011 and 2013. Principal repayments will begin in April 2019 and the Government expects the loan to be repaid on time and in full with interest. The most recent statutory report on the loan was laid in Parliament on 15 October 2018 and is available to view online.